Air Fryer Jerk Chicken Wings

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These Air Fryer Jerk Chicken Wings with a sweet and tangy sauce are an easy 30-minute main dish. They use one of my favorite jerk seasonings with a few other simple ingredients. Pair them with one of these sides for jerk chicken to make a meal.

Golden-brown jerk chicken wings seasoned with vibrant spices, garnished with fresh lime slices for a zesty touch

Why Make Jerk Chicken Wings in the Air Fryer

Easy: This jerk chicken wings recipe uses a dry rub. So, they can be ready in about 30 minutes, making them a quick dinner idea.
Crispy chicken skin without deep-frying: most people get crispy skin on their wings, by deep-frying them. But, like my air fryer whole chicken wings, this recipes shows how the air fryer makes crispy skin possible minus the grease.

Ingredients Needed

Here’s what you need to know about the ingredients in this recipe to make it successfully:

Jerk Chicken Wings

Chicken Wings: I’m using raw chicken wings that I pat dry to remove moisture.
Spicy Jerk Seasoning: I buy this from The Jerk Man, a small business, because they are by far, one of the best jerk seasonings that I’ve tried. The combination of spices like all-spice, nutmeg, cayenne pepper tastes authentic.
Avocado Oil: this is a neutral-tasting oil with a high smoke point. You could also use avocado oil.

Sweet & Spicy Sauce

Honey: any honey works
Sriracha Sauce: you could use regular hot sauce, but I prefer sriracha sauce since it also includes flavors like garlic and is creamier (which helps it stick better to the wings)
Lime Juice: I use this to balance the flavors of sweet and spicy.

Ingredients for jerk chicken wings: chicken wings, spicy jerk seasoning, avocado oil, honey, Sriracha sauce, and lime juice, each displayed in separate bowls

How To Make Air Fryer Jerk Chicken Wings

Prepare the chicken: Add the chicken, avocado oil, and jerk seasoning to a ziplock bag or large bowl. Mix to fully incorporate the spices on the chicken.
Cook the chicken: Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees. Add the chicken wings in a single layer to your air fryer basket
Air fry the chicken wings for 12-15 minutes per side, depending on how crisp you’d like your wings to be
Prepare the sauce and toss the wings in it: Mix the sweet and spicy sauce in a small bowl. Toss/Coat the wings in the sauce before serving

a photo collage for how to make Jerk Chicken Wings in an air fryer in four key steps

Recipe Tips & FAQs

For the most flavor: Marinate the chicken for 4 hours, ideally overnight. Take the chicken out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before you intend to cook it.
Cook longer for crispier skin: depending on your air fryer, you might need to adjust the cook time. I prefer crispier chicken wing skin. So, I cook mine longer. You can check your wings at the 20 minute mark to decide if you’d like to crisp the skin more.

Flavorful jerk chicken wings, golden-brown and crispy, surrounded by fresh lime slices, with a small dish of Sriracha sauce for an extra kick

Why are my wings not crispy in the air fryer?

There are a few reasons that can cause wings to not be crispy

Should I flour my wings before air frying?

I do not add breading to my air fryer chicken wing recipes.

How do you keep chicken wings from sticking in the air fryer?

Preheating your air fryer and giving the wings space helps them to cook evenly and keep the wings from sticking to the cooking pan.

Recipes to Serve with Jerk Chicken Wings

I actually have an entire post of the best side dishes for jerk chicken. It includes soul food options like baked macaroni and cheese as well as more traditional Jamaican side dishes like coco bread.